CATALOG OF AN EXHIBIT
in Honor of the
Scsquicentennial of the Birth of
LOUIS PASTEUR
National Library of Medicine
Bethesda, Maryland
October 2, 1972 - February 4, 1973
CATALOG OF PASTEUR EXHIBIT
This catalog lists the manuscripts, books, journals, pamphlets, offprints,
and original pictures from the collections of the National Library of
Medicine shown at the exhibit in honor of the sesquicentennial of the birth
of Louis Pasteur, All items are by Louis Pasteur unless otherwise noted.
The Library also wishes to acknowledge its indebtedness to the Pasteur
Institute for providing a number of photographs that have enhanced the value
of the exhibit.
Case I CRYSTALLOGRAPHY
Trained as a chemist, Pasteur's earliest research was in the field of
crystallography and the optical rotation of polarized light in various
solutions.
1. Recherches sur le dimorphisme. Paris, 1848. Offprint from Comptes
rendus de 1'Academic des Sciences.
Pasteur's first scientific paper, presented to the Academie des
Sciences on 20 March 1848. These studies in crystallography helped prepare
the way for his first great discovery.
2. Mitscherlich, E. Note. Comptes rendus de 1'Academie des Sciences,
19:720, 14 October 1844.
Mitscherlich reported through Jean Baptiste Biot, France's leading
crystallographer, that sodium-ammonium tartrate and paratartrate were
identical in composition, crystalline form, and other physico-chemical
characteristics except that the first rotated a beam of polarized light
and the second did not. This note stimulated Pasteur's first important
research.
3. Recherches sur les relations qui peuvent exister entre la forme cris-
talline, la composition chimique et le sens de la polarisation
rotatoire. Paris, 1848. Offprint from Annales de chimie et de
physique.
Pasteur discovered that the crystals of both the tartrate and para-
tartrate discussed by Mitscherlich had hemihedral facets; that those of
tartrate were all identical but that those of paratartrate included both
right-handed and left-handed forms. When separated these too were opti-
cally active, but in opposite directions. His work immediately received
the warm approbation of Biot.
1
4. Notes for experiments on crystallization, 1858.
Pasteur continued active investigations in crystallography and
molecular dyssymmetry for over ten years. These are notes for experi-
ments to be undertaken.
5. History of crystallography, 1878.
In 1878 Pasteur planned to bring out a collection of studies on
molecular dyssymmetry. This text represents part of a historical intro-
duction prepared for that work.
6. Notes for preparation of revised version, never published, of Pasteur s
first memoir on tartrates and paratartrates.
7. Draft of letter to J. B. Biot, 16 October 1856.
Pasteur is seeking Biot's advice on a question of publishing prelim-
inary findings. Pasteur feared that another scientist, C. A. H. Marbach,
might reach the same conclusions and publish first.
Case II FERMENTATION
As a chemist, Pasteur turned to research on fermentation. He demonstrated
conclusively that fermentation resulted from the life processes of specific
microorganisms, each with its own mode of action, and he discovered anaer-
obic life.
1. Leeuwenhoek, Antoni van. Ondervindingen en Beschouwingen der Onsigt-
bare Geschapene Waarheden. 2d ed„ Delft, 1694.
In his letter of 14 June 1680, Leeuwenhoek for the first time
described the microscopic image of brewer's yeast, observed in fermenting
beer. This same letter also marks the discovery of anaerobic fermentative
bacteria--a discovery that was forgotten until rediscovered by Pasteur.
2. Fabbroni, Adamo. Dell' arte di fare il vino. Florence, 1787.
Fabbroni was the first to identify the ferment of wine as an albu-
minoid substance. He believed it was contained within the grapes and
released upon crushing. As Pasteur remarked, "it was a step forward. It
gave an indication of the place yeast should occupy among the organic
products."
3. Cagniard-Latour, Charles. Memoire sur la fermentation vineuse. Annales
de chimie et de physique, 2 ser. 68:206-222, 1838.
2
In a series of studies presented in 1835-37 and summed up in this
Paper, Cagniard-Latour concluded that brewer's yeast was a living plant
which produced by budding and that its vegetative processes caused the
breakdown of sugar into carbon dioxide and alcohol. However, his theory
was attacked by Liebig, Germany's leading organic chemist.
4. Memoire sur l'alcool amylique. Comptes rendus de 1'Academie des
Sciences. 41:296-300, 20 August 1855.
Because of his interest in molecular dyssymmetry, Pasteur studied
the optical activity of amyl alcohol, a frequent fermentation byproduct.
Most chemists in the 1840's following Liebig held that fermentation, and
putrefaction, were essentially chemical processes. Pasteur, convinced
that life alone could create new dyssymmetries, began his study of fermen-
tation predisposed to believe that it resulted from biological action.
Thus molecular dyssymmetry was linked to fermentation by amyl alcohol.
5. Memoire sur la fermentation appelee lactique. Annales de chimie et
de physique, 3 ser. 52:404-418, 1858.
Pasteur's first paper on fermentation, which put forth the view that
lactic fermentation was caused by a specific "lactic yeast," contains in
essence the "germ theory" of fermentation. It also introduced the use of
a purely artificial and reproducible medium for fermentation experiments.
6o Memoire sur la fermentation alcoolique. Annales de chimie et de
physique, 3 ser. 58:323-426, 1860.
In a series of inquiries Pasteur demolished Liebig's antivitalistic
theory of fermentation, establishing that yeast is a living organism and
that sugar undergoes alcoholic fermentation only in the presence of living
yeast. He also described and measured the various fermentation products
accurately.
7. Animalcules infusoires vivant sans gaz oxygene libre et determinant
des fermentations. Paris, 1861. Offprint from Comptes rendus de
1'Academie des Sciences.
While studying lactic fermentation, Pasteur also found a specific
butyric "ferment," which he called an infusorium. He wrote: "It is, I
believe, the first example known of animal ferments, and also of animals
living without free oxygen gas." He had in fact discovered anaerobic
bacteria.
Case III VINEGAR
Unlike many 19th century scientists, Pasteur kept firmly in mind the impor-
tance to society of applying science to practical ends. His research on
vinegar led to significant improvements in the industry.
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1. Nouveau precede industrial de fabrication du vinaigre. Paris, 1862.
Reprinted with changes from the Comptes,rendus de ,1 Academie des
Sciences.
Investigating "acetic fermentation," Pasteur demonstrated that it
resulted from the oxidation of alcohol into acetic acid by Mycoderma aceti.
This finding enabled him to suggest new methods for producing vinegar.
2. Memoire sur la fermentation acetique. Paris, 1864. Offprint from
Annales scientifiques de l'Ecole Normale Superieure..
Presentation copy to Marcellin Berthelot, the noted organic chemist.
Pasteur's primary memoir on acetic fermentation and the production of
vinegar.
3. Etudes sur le vinaigre, sa fabrication, ses maladies, moyens de les
prevenir. Paris, 1868.
Pasteur published in this volume his "Lecture on the vinegar of wine,"
presented by request of the Mayor and Chamber of Commerce at Orleans, the
center of vinegar production in France, to make the information more widely
available for public benefit. "Nothing is more pleasing to men devoted to
a career in science," Pasteur concluded, "than to enlarge the number of
discoveries, but when the practical utility of their observations is imme-
diate, their joy attains the highest pitch."
DISEASES OF WINE
In 1863, at the command of Emperor Napoleon III, Pasteur undertook a study
of the "diseases" of wine and the problems of transporting and preserving
them. These studies followed naturally upon his work in fermentation.
Examining different wines microscopically, he discovered a variety of con-
taminating microorganisms and proved their specific relationship to acid,
"turned," "oily," "bitter," and other types of spoiled wines. To kill the
parasites and preserve the wine he recommended heating to 50°-60° C. for a
short period. The process, since then applied to many foods, is now known
as pasteurization.
4. Draft of letter to Minister of Agriculture, 16 March 1865, requesting
funds.
Like many scientists, Pasteur had difficulty getting money to carry
out his research, even when sponsored by the Emperor.
5. Etudes sur le vin. Paris, 1866.
■ a /T'v^^-01!1^ W°rk ?n Wine' dieted in only three years, reports
of wine 8S °n C3USeS and meanS °f Preventing "diseases"
4
6. Draft of letter to Alfred de Vergnette-Lamotte, 7 May 1864.
In his research, Pasteur sought the assistance of wine producers.
In this letter he discusses causes of bitterness in wine and requests the
aid of de Vergnette-Lamotte in obtaining samples.
7. Draft of letter to de Vergnette-Lamotte, 5 February 1865.
Pasteur expresses thanks for de Vergnette-Lamotte's offer of help
and requests wines of various qualities and ages to pursue his studies.
He is reluctant to publish his results, Pasteur writes, being not yet
fully satisfied, but hopes to finish before the next harvest.
8. Procede pratique de conservation et d'amelioration des vins. Comptes
rendus de 1'Academie des Sciences, 60:899-901, 1 May 1865.
In this communication Pasteur announced the process of heating wine
briefly to about 60 C. in order to preserve it. It followed immediately
upon the presentation by de Vergnette-Lamotte of a different method of heat
ing for preservation. This led to an unfortunate quarrel over priority.
As Pasteur's long-time associate Emile Duclaux wrote, "All profound faith
is necessarily a little intolerant, and Pasteur had that faith." It often
enabled him to triumph in more important causes.
9. Draft of letter to Le Moniteur Vinicole, 14 May 1865, with the editor's
reply.
Pasteur points out the difference between his method of preservation
and that suggested by de Vergnette-Lamotte.
10. Conservation des vins. Lettre . . . 3 M. Quesneville. Paris, 1866.
Pasteur fought ardently for his convictions and for his claims to
priority.
Case IV SPONTANEOUS GENERATION
Pasteur's experiments were fundamental in overthrowing persistent beliefs
in the continuing regeneration of living organisms from nonliving matter.
1. Redi, Francesco. Esperienze intorno alia generazione degl'insetti.
Florence, 1668.
Redi demolished the idea that maggots arose spontaneously in decaying
meat by demonstrating in a series of simple yet convincing experiments that
they came from eggs laid by flies.
2. Joblot, Louis. Descriptions et usages de plusieurs nouveaux micro-
scopes . Paris, 1718.
5
Joblot wo apparently the first to experiment on boiled hay infusions.
Animalcules did not appear when the mixture vis stoppered immediately after
boiling but did appear after the stopper was removed. He concluded that
they cano from minute creatures floating in the air.
3. Schwann, Theodor. Vorlaufige Mittheilung, betreffend Versuche iiber
die Weingahrung und Faulniss. Annalen der Physlk und Chemie, 2 ser.
11:184-193, 1837.
Schwann showed that sterile infusions would not putrefy even when air
was admitted if the air was heated first, indicating that it was not air
as such, but something in air, that caused putrefaction. His experiments
with fermentation were less unequivocal.
4. Pouchet, F. A. Heterogenic ou traite de la generation spontanee, base
sur de nouvelles experiences. Paris, 1859.
A well-known and respected scientist. Pouchet demonstrated, as he
thought, that life could be generated in solutions of materials formed by
previously living organisms. Pouchet's work turned Pasteur to an attack on
spontaneous generation as a necessary support for his germ theory of fer-
mentation.
5. Memoire sur les corpuscules organises qui existent dans 1'atmosphere;
examen de la doctrine des generations spontanees. Annales de chimie
et de physique, 3 ser. 64:5-110, January 1862.
In a set of masterly experiments fully reported in this classic paper,
Pasteur demonstrated beyond doubt the existence of living germs floating in
the air and their role in originating putrefaction.
6. Lister, Joseph. On a new method of treating compound fracture, abscess,
etc. Lancet, 1867, 1:326-329.
In this first paper on the antiseptic method, Lister acknowledges his
indebtedness to the research of Pasteur in leading him to this great
advance in surgery.
7. La Theorie des germes et ses applications a la medecine et 3 la
chirurgie„ Paris, 1878. Offprint from Bulletin de 1'Academie de
Medecine.
sons,
Visiting hospitals, Pasteur became convinced that contaminated per-
xvu*, dressings, and instruments were more important than airborne germs
in surgical infection. In this lecture to the Academie de Medecine, he
urged surgeons to use some of the aseptic precautions that had played such
a large role in his own successful bacteriological investigations.
^his water this sponge this lint with which you wash or cover a
wound, he told the surgeons, deposit germs which have the power of
6
multiplying rapidly within the tissues and which would inevitably bring
ea h to the patients in a very short time if the vital processes did not
counteract the multiplication of the germs."
-aSe V DISEASE OF SILKWORMS
At the request of his old teacher Jean Baptiste Dumas and the Minister of
Agriculture, Pasteur in 1865 undertook a study of pebrine, a disease that
was destroying silkworms and silk production in France. Within a few weeks
he outlined a practical method of control by examining moths for the "cor-
puscles" associated with the disease. For two years, however, Pasteur
resisted the view that the corpuscles were the causative agent of pebrine
rather than the result of a pathological process.
Partly, he failed at first to distinguish between two diseases affecting
silkworms; partly he was unfamiliar with protozoology. Only through a
lengthy process of experiment and reason did he reach the conclusion that
the corpuscles (a protozoan) caused the disease.
1. Bassi, Agostino. Del Mai del Segno, Calcinnaccio, o Moscardino.
Lodi, 1835-36.
2. ---. Tre Nuove Memorie. Lodi, 1844.
Bassi was the first to demonstrate that a specific parasitic micro-
organism caused and transmitted a specific contagious disease in an animal
species. The disease was the calcino of silkworms, the agent a fungus now
named Botrytis bassiana. He argued that his theory of contagion, demon-
strated in silkworm disease, might also be applied to smallpox, typhus, and
Asiatic cholera. Pasteur was aware of Bassi's work and cited it in his
studies on silkworm disease.
3. Observations sur la maladie des vers 2 sole. Comptes rendus de
1'Academie des Sciences, 61:506-512, 25 September 1865.
Pasteur's first report on silkworm disease, proposing control by
selection of eggs from moths without corpuscles. This paper was first pre-
sented to the Agricultural Committee of Alais on 26 June 1865, only 19 days
after Pasteur arrived at Alais to commence his experiments.
4. Draft of letter to Minister of Agriculture, 18 January 1868.
As usual, Pasteur had to importune the Minister of Agriculture for
funds to support his research.
5. Lettres sur la sericulture. Montpellier, 1869. Offprint from Messager
agricole.
7
Pasteur was vitally concerned about the practical application of
his research, and so sought to disseminate information in agricultural
journals as well as through the Academie des Sciences.
6. Etudes sur la maladie des vers a soie, 2 v. Paris, 1870.
Pasteur's full study on pebrine and flacherie, another silkworm
disease.
7. Toast to International Congress of Sericulture, 187 6.
As Honorary President and representative from France, Pasteur pre-
sented this toast ". . . to the peaceful contests of science,"
8. Draft of letter to President of Academy of Medicine, 19 November 1879.
Pasteur was still being consulted about silkworm production. He
blamed the poor results in 1879 on the unusually cold weather in April
and May.
STUDIES ON BEER
9. Etudes sur la bi£re. Paris, 1876.
Following the debacle of 1870, Pasteur turned his attention to beer,
hoping that French brewers might compete more successfully with the Ger-
mans. The work also contains many of Pasteur's fundamental researches on
microorganisms and fermentation in general, extending and reinforcing his
earlier work and establishing firmly techniques and principles of micro-
biology.
10. Notes for an experiment on beer.
Case VI GERM THEORY OF DISEASE
Increasingly interested in problems of contagious disease, during the 1870's
Pasteur turned first to anthrax. He confirmed and extended the earlier
work of Davaine and Koch and showed how the disease was transmitted under
field conditions. He discovered the relation of the vibrion septique to
septicemia, the streptococcus to childbed fever, and the staphylococcus to
boils and osteomyelitis. He was a tireless advocate of the germ theory of
disease. Its eventual acceptance was due to his discoveries and arguments
as much as to those of any single man.
1. Beyle, Robert. Some Considerations Touching the Usefulness of Experi-
mental Natural Philosophy. 2d edc London, 1664.
8
In a prescient passage, Boyle seems almost to have foreseen the
relationship between Pasteur's early work on fermentation and his later
work on infectious diseases: ". . .he that throughly understands the
nature of Ferments . . . shall probably be much better able then he that
ignores them, to give a fair account of divers Phaenomena of several
diseases. ..."
2. Davaine, C. J. Recherches sur les infusoires du sang dans la maladie
connue sous le nom de sang de rate. Comptes rendus de 1'Academie
des Sciences. 57:220-223, 27 July 1863.
In a series of papers extending from this one to 1870, Davaine
investigated the pathogenesis of anthrax and argued cogently that the
rod-shaped bodies constantly found in association with the disease must
be its cause.
3. Koch, Robert. Die Aetiologie der Milzbrand-Krankheit, begriindet auf
die Entwicklungsgeschichte des Bacillus anthracis. Beitrage zur
Biologie der Pflanzen, 2:277-310, 1876.
Koch first isolated a pure culture of the anthrax bacillus, described
its complete life history, and convincingly demonstrated that it was the
cause of the disease.
4. Charbon et septicemie. Paris, 1877.
This is a separate printing, combining Pasteur's first two papers on
anthrax, presented at the Academie des Sciences on 30 April and 16 July
1877.
5. Notes on anthrax in chickens.
Pasteur found that anthrax did not normally grow in birds, but if he
lowered their body temperature to that of animals susceptible to anthrax,
then chickens also contracted the disease.
6. Notes relating to experiments on septicemia.
7. De 1*extension de la theorie des germes a l'etiologie de quelques
maladies communes. Comptes rendus de 1'Academie des Sciences,
90:1033-1044, 3 May 1880.
Pasteur's observations on the causative organisms of boils, osteo-
myelitis, and puerperal fever.
Case VII VACCINATION
Discovering through a chance observation in 1879 that a culture of the
germ of chLken cholera, attenuated by age, protected the animals against
9
infection by a fresh, virulent culture, Pasteur conceived the idea of
attenuating other cultures intentionally. In short order he created vac-
cines, heretofore known only for smallpox, for chicken cholera (by aging),
anthrax (by culturing at high temperature), and swine erysipelas (by pas-
sage through rabbits).
1. Jenner, Edward. An Inquiry into the Causes and Effects of the Variolae
Vaccinae . . . Known by the Name of the Cow Pox. London, 1798.
Jenner introduced inoculation with cowpox as a preventive of smallpox.
Pasteur read Jenner's work early in 1879 and it was much on his mind as he
experimented with chicken cholera.
2. Sur les maladies virulentes et en particulier sur la maladie appelee
vulgairement cholera des poules. Paris, 1880. Offprint from Bulletin
de 1'Academie de Medecine.
Pasteur announced the discovery that the infectious microbe of chicken
cholera might be diminished in virulence so that inoculated birds would not
die but would be protected against the usually fatal effects of subsequent
inoculation with fully virulent germs. Once attenuated, the germs main-
tained this condition through successive cultures. This made the inoculum,
wrote Pasteur, a true vaccine.
3. De 1'attenuation des virus et de leur retour a la virulence. Comptes
rendus de 1'Academie des Sciences, 92:429-435, 28 February 1881.
Pasteur in 1881 succeeded in attenuating the anthrax bacillus by
holding a culture for eight days at 42°-43° C. at which temperature spores
did not form. With this he prepared a new vaccine.
4. Notes on the non-recurrence of contagious diseases, 1884.
The non-recurrence of certain infectious diseases among persons (or
animals) was a key factor in Pasteur's development of vaccines.
5. Notes for vaccination experiments, 11 November 1881.
Rabbits previously vaccinated against anthrax were to be inoculated
with chicken cholera to see if the vaccine would have any effect against
another disease. Pasteur did not expect that it would.
6. Letter from Pasteur concerning inoculation experiments, 26 August 1882.
7. De l'attenuation des virus. Revue scientifianp. 30-353-361 16 Sep-
tember 1882. ■— ' *
Pasteur's report on anthrax vaccine presented to the International
Congress of Hygiene and Demography on 5 September 1882 was immediately
carried in the scientific news press. In it Pasteur replied sharply to
some criticisms by Koch, which led to a heated exchange between the two.
10
8. La vaccination charbonneuse; reponse de M. Pasteur a un memoire de
M. Koch. Paris, 1883. Offprint from Revue sclentifioue.
Presentation copy from Pasteur.
9. Letter relating to vaccine for swine erysipelas, 20 December 1884.
The letter concerns the efficacy of a batch of vaccine.
Case VIII RABIES
Pasteur began his studies on rabies in December 1880. By 1885 he had
found a method of cultivating the virus in living nervous tissue of rab-
bits, attenuating it, and protecting dogs against infection. On 6 July
1885, confronted with a boy, Joseph Meister, who had been severely bitten
and seemed sure to die, Pasteur decided, "not without strong and painful
feelings of anxiety," to undertake his first trial on a human being. The
rabies treatment was the crowning popular achievement of Pasteur's scien-
tific career. Equally important for the future of medical science was the
development of a method for cultivating and studying the filterable viruses
1. Methode pour prevenir la rage apr£s morsure. Comptes rendus do
1'Academie des Sciences, 101:765-773, 26 October 1885.
In this first report on the rabies treatment in humans, Pasteur sums
up his experiments, his method, and the successful treatment of Meistrr.
2. Letter to Dr. Grancher, 21 December 1885.
Four children have just arrived from New York for the rabies treat-
ment, accompanied by Dr. Frank S. Billings. Pasteur asks Grancher to start
the inoculations immediately.
3. Resultats de 1' application de la me'thode pour prevenir la rage aprds
morsure. Comptes rendus de 1'Academie des Sciences, 1 March 1886.
Printer's proof, with annotations by Pasteur, of his second communi-
cation on the treatment of rabies.
4. Notes on the number of persons treated to 1 April 1886.
5. Note complementaire sur les resultats de 1'application de la methode
de prophylaxie de la rage apres morsure. Paris, 1886. Offprint from
Comptes rendus de 1'Academie des Sciences.
By the time of this third report, presented on 12 April 1886, 726
persons had been treated or were under treatment.
11
6. Nouvelle communication sur la rage. Paris, 1886. Offprint from
Bulletin de 1'Academie de Medecine.
At the time of this fourth report on 2 November 1886, 2490 persons
had come to Paris for the Pasteur treatment against rabies. 1726 were from
France or Algeria, of whom 10 had died.
7. Various notes on rabies inoculation experiments, 1886.
Case IX OPPONENTS OF PASTEUR
A number of physicians attacked the Pasteur treatment for rabies as useless
or dangerous, accusing him of hiding failures. An ardent controversialist,
Pasteur reacted vigorously to such attacks.
1. Draft of letter, 1886, inquiring about rumored failures in Russia.
2. Draft of statement attacking Dr. Michel Peter, 12 July 1887.
The statement, charging one of Pasteur's inveterate opponents with
incompetence in matters relating to rabies, was prepared for presentation
to the Academy of Medicine, but it is not recorded in the Academy's Bulletin.
3. Draft of reply to Dr. Anton von Frisch, 1887.
Pasteur felt that Dr. Frisch of Vienna was another detractor.
4. Leblanc, C. La Rage; lecture faite a la Section d'economie du betail
et d'industrie laitiere. Paris, 1887.
This offprint, a presentation copy from the author, includes rather
acid marginal comments by Pasteur.
5. Letter urging election of Arnaldo Cantani to Academie de Medecine,
10 July 1888.
Pasteur strongly supports Cantani, who had set up the first antirabies
center in Naples at his own expense and despite strong opposition from some
of his colleagues.
PASTEUR INSTITUTE
After Pasteur's second communication on 1 March 1886, the Academie des
Sciences recommended the establishment of a "Pasteur Institute" to give the
antirabies treatment. Subscriptions soon poured in from all over the world.
6. Letter of thanks for donation to Pasteur Institute, 18 March 1886.
12
7. Letter to Dr. Grancher relating to organization of Pasteur Insti-
tute, 19 February 1887.
8. Lettre sur la rage. Annales de l'lnstitut Pasteur, vol. 1, no. 1,
January 1887.
Appropriately, the new Annales de l'lnstitut Pasteur opened with a
letter from Pasteur presenting further experiences with his treatment,
especially in Russia where rabid wolves posed a serious problem.
Case X PASTEUR THE TEACHER
During many of his most productive years, Pasteur served as professor and
administrator in a succession of universities. He was known, among other
things, as a strict disciplinarian.
1. Letter dated 29 January 1854.
As Professor of Chemistry at Strasbourg, Pasteur orders formic acid.
2. Draft of report for 1855 as Dean of Faculty of Science at Lille.
Pasteur is particularly concerned because expenses for heat and light
exceeded the allowance by 306 francs 31 centimes.
3. Subjects for the Concours d'agregation, 1859.
4. Notes on professional education, 10 November 1863.
Pasteur writes down some of his views, stemming from the oft repeated
aphorism, "There are no applied sciences . . . there are applications of
science."
5. Letter to father of a student, 1859.
The student spent two nights out of school without permission.
Pasteur requests the application of parental pressure.
6. Rules of discipline, Ecole Normale Superieure, with changes in Pasteur's
hand.
7. Report on the section of sciences, Ecole Normale Superieure, for
1863-64.
In his discussion of discipline, Pasteur decries the habit of smoking
which is "so little worthy of future professors and which makes them lose
time that is so precious."
13
Case XI
PASTEUR AS PATRIOT
Son of a sergeant-major in the army of Napoleon, Pasteur was an ardent
patriot with a deep love for his native land. While he believed science
was international, he also strived especially to promote science in France
and thereby the strength and glory of France.
1. Le Budget de la science. Paris, 1868.
Pasteur urged additional support for science, especially the con-
struction of laboratories. Even Claude Bernard at the College de France
had only miserable facilities.
2. Quelques reflexions sur la science en France. Paris, 1871.
Pasteur again urged support for science and attributed France's
disaster in 1870-71 in part to her neglect of science.
3. Draft of note requesting more laboratory space at the Ecole Normale
Superieure.
Pasteur cites the importance of his work for science and industry,
as well as the favor of the Emperor.
4. Letter to J. L. Raulin, 1870.
Pasteur notes that it would advance the cause of science for the
directors of laboratories to receive their lodging also, as in Germany.
5. Notebook kept by Pasteur, September-December, 1870.
Filled with notes on his thoughts and his reading and with clippings
from contemporary journals, this notebook reveals how deeply affected
Pasteur was by the tragedy that befell France in the disasters of 1870.
6. Un Correspondance entre un savant frangais et un savant prussien pendant
la guerre. Paris, 1871.
Pasteur received an honorary M.D. from Bonn in 1868. He returned it
in 1871 in protest against the "barbarity" of the German emperor.
7. Letter to editor of Avenir de Jura. 22 January 1876.
Pasteur stood for the French Senate in 1876, not as a party man but
as a representative of science. A political conservative, he was defeated
at the polls. This letter to the editor of Avenir de Jura, written in
another hand but signed by Pasteur, explains his position.
8. Notes for speech at unveiling of statue of J. B. Dumas, 1889.
14
Pasteur praises those few scientists who, like Dumas, are able to
continue their scientific work and at the same time "throw themselves into
the battles of public life" so that their ideas may triumph. This, of
course, is what Pasteur did himself.
Case XII VARIA
1. Two portraits of Pasteur, from photographs by Pierre Petit.
2. Calling card, with note.
3. Letter of 23 August 1847, forwarding theses.
4. Pensee, 5 May 1886.
5. Letter to Laurent Pasteur, 1 March 1887.
6 EugSne Chevreul. Examen d'un memoire . . . par M. Ebelman, suivi de
considerations historiques . . . Offprint from Journal des savants,
1848.
Marginal notes by Pasteur indicate his critical attention to historical
aspects of his fields of research.
7. Draft of a report on the progress of physiological chemistry since 1848,
undated.
The report, which is mostly about Lavoisier, was apparently not
completed.
Case XIII SPEECHES AND HONORS
Pasteur became one of France's most honored scientists. He often spoke
for the nation and at the great celebration of his 70th birthday in 1892
tributes flowed in from around the world.
1. Toast at International Congress of Medical Sciences, 1884.
As French delegate, Pasteur toasts Danish hospitality.
2. Opening words of speech at Edinburgh University tercentenary.
Pasteur repeats an anecdote of Henri IV to explain why he speaks in
French.
3a T„hile de M. Pasteur. Paris, 1893.
Ceremonies in honor of Pasteur's 70th birthday.
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4. Letter of Mme. Jean Reynaud to Pasteur's daughter, 13 November 1886.
With draft of Pasteur's reply.
Mme. Reynaud expresses her deep pleasure that the Prix Jean-Reynaud
has been awarded to Pasteur.
5. Oeuvres de Pasteur, edited by Pasteur Vallery-Radot. 7 v. 1922-1939.
Case XIV JOURNALISTIC VIEWS OF PASTEUR
1. 'M. Pasteur in his laboratory." Wood engraving, hand colored, 1885.
2. '*The French chemist, M. Pasteur, experimenting on a chloroformed
rabbit." Wood engraving, hand colored, 1885.
3. "Hydrophobia." Pasteur holding rabbits. Lithograph from Vanity Fair,
1887.
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U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare
Public Health Service
National Institutes of Health
DHEW PubUcation No. (NIH) 73- 398